Ball point pen



I Aug.- 13, 1957 W. GERMANN BALL POINT PEN Filed DSC. 28, 1954 INVENTOR.

ll ol Il Werner' Germania.

ATTORNEY `z,sz,447

BALL POINT PEN Werner Germann, Geneva, Switzerland,` assignor to Fabrique Suisse de Crayons Caran dAche S. A., Geneva, Switzerland, a corporation of Switzerland Application December 28, 1954, Serial No. 478,158 l( laims priority, application Switzerland January 5, 1954 3 Claims. (Cl. 1Z0-42.03)

- -A'number of ball point pens are known, chieily ball point pens adapted to write in diterent colors, wherein each ink cartridge is held in its operative position at the tip of the pen through a clamp-ing member submitted to the action lof a spring urging it into its closed position.

In these pens lof a.known structure, the jaws of the clamp close'under the action of their return spring whenever the cartridge is withdrawn inside the body of the pen and Isaid jaws enter inside the sa-id body. This withdrawal of the clamp inside the body of the pen leads to a substantial deformation of the jaws. o

It will be readily understood that the more the elastic d 2,802,441 Patented Aug.. 13, 1957 annular groove 7 near its end facing away from the clamp i 3. On theother hand, the adjacent end of the tube 5 is provided with an inturned edge 8 facing the inside of the tube so as to engage said groove 7 in the tubular member 4., The tube 5 is slotted over a portion of its length starting from said edge 8 so as to assume a certain degree of elasticity, which allows an easy mounting of the two cooperating parts 4 `and 5 by a mere sliding movement of the member 4 inside the tube 5 until the edge 8 onthe latter engages the groove 7 in the member 4.

, A spring 9 housed inside the body 1 of the pen surrounds the tubular member 4. Said spring 9 engages at one end a shoulder 10 on the inside of the body 1 `and at theother end the cooperating end of the tube 5 forming a sortv of shoulder 11. The last convolution of the .spring 9 is not in close engagement with the end of the tube 5, but bears merely'against said end While leaving jaws ,of the clamp are deformed between their open position and their completely closed position the more the jaws risk breaking speedily by reason of the considerable strains to which they are submitted.

The ball point pen |according to my invention has for its object to remove this drawback. `It is of the type includingy a single cartridge to the end -of which the ball point is secured which cartridge is adapted to withdraw within the body of the pen while a clamp adapted to be actuated by a pusher knob is intended to hold the cartridge projecting beyond the louter end of the pen body in its operative position through engagement of the jaws of the clampinside a recess provided in the vicinity of the end of said cartridge, the opening and closing movements of said clamp 4as well as the automatic receding movement of the cartridge inside the body of the pen being controlled by axial movement of said clamp inside the tip of the pen body as provided by the pusher knob against the action of a spring urging the clamp back into its closed inner position. This ball point pen has for its chief novel feature the provision on the clamp of two shoulders, the outer shoulder being 4adapted to cooperate with the tip of the body of the pen so as to hold the clamp in permanent projecting relationship with reference to said tip, while the inner shoulder cooperates with a shoulder provided inside the body of the pen, the two shoulders on the clamp limiting the axial movements of the latter with reference to the body of the pen even when the ink cartridge has not engaged the clamp.

I have illustrated by way of example in accompanying drawings two embodiments of a ball point pen according to my invention, said embodiments being shown diagrammatioally and by way of mere exemplications. In said drawings:

Fig. 1 is VKan axial sectional view of a first embodiment.

Fig. 2 is a partial sectional view showing the pen while pressure is being exerted on the pusher knob.`

Turning to Fig. 1, the ball point pen includes a tubular body 1 with a tapering tip 2. A clamp 3 is provided inside said tip 2 of the pen body. Said clamp is formed at the endof a tubular member 4 over which is iitted a guiding tube 5 extending up to the rear end of the body of the pen and engaged by a pusher knob 6 litted inside the body 1. The connection between the tubular member 4 on which the clamp 3 is formed and the tube 5 is obtained as followsfthetubular member 4 is provided with an a clearance between the inner periphery Aof the convolution and the edge of the tube 5. Furthermore, as readily apparent from inspection of Fig. 2, the lateral surface 27 of the `groove 7 located on the side nearest the clamp 3, is sloping with reference to :a plane perpendicular to the axis of the pen so as to allow the edge 8 to slide out of `the groove 7 when a pressure is exerted on the knob 6 against the action of the return spring 9, whereby an axial movement of the knob 6 and of the tube 5 is produced which is longer than the dista-nce separating the shoulders 19 and 20 for inoperative conditions. As a matter of fact; since the end of the tube 5 is provided with a slot, said tube is sufficiently elastic for its edge 8 to be capable of moving lout of the groove 7 and to slide along the tubular member 4 (see Fig. `2). A cartridge 12 to one end of which is secured a ball 13 .is fitted inside the tubular member 4and the tube 6 aligned therewith. This cartridge 12 is provided with 4an annular recess 14 in proximity with'its outer end. The jaws 15 of the clamp 3 are shaped so a-s to engage said recess 14 and to-hold the cartridge 12 projecting beyond the end of the body 1 of the pen.

Each jaw element 15 is provided with a sloping surface 16 adapted to cooperate with the edge 17 of the opening -at the tip of the body 1. As will be readily apparent, any shifting of the clamp towards the outside of the body 1 allows the jaws 15 to move apart under the action of their natural elasticity whereas any shifting in the opposite direction produces their closing movement.

Furthermore, the clamp 3 is provided with two shoulders, a first outer shoulder 18 being adapted to cooperate withk the tip of the body 1, i. e. with the front Vsurface of the edge 17 of said body. A second shoulder 19 is formed oni the rear end of the jaws 15, i. e, inside the body 1 for cooperation with a shoulder 20 formed inside said body 1.

These two shoulders 18 and 19 form the terminal stops limiting the axial movements of the clamp 3 with reference to the body of the pen, even when the cartridge 12 has not engaged the clamp and has withdrawn inside the body 1 yof the pen.

On the other hand, the inner section of the clamp is provided with a shoulder 21 adapted to cooperate with a shoulder 22 on the cartridge 12 so as to limit the outward movemeutof the latter when the clamp 3 is being opened.

The pusher knob 6 Iis secured directly to the rear end of the tube 5 and is provided to this effect with an exten- It should be remarked that the rear end of the cartridge 12in its receded position, abuts against the extension 23 ot' the pusher knob 6 as shown in interrupted lines.

In order to provide for the automatic receding movement of the cartridge 12 inside the body 1 of the pen through depression of the knob 6 a second spring 24 is provided between the cartridge 12 and the tube 5. Said spring is fitted over an extension 25 of the tubular member 4. It is thus held betweensaid extension and stops 26 formed at thevrear end on the cartridge 12.

VThe operation ef this pen isas fonows: when it-is de,

siredv to bring the cartridge 12 into its operative position, i. e. intov a position for which the ball projects 4beyond the tip of the pen, a pressure is exerted on the knob 6. The beginning of the axial movement imparted to the tube 5 and to the cartridge 12 constrains said two parts to'move in unison until the shoulder 19 on the tubular member 4 abuts the shoulder 20 of the body of the pen. At this moment, the clamp 3 has opened while the edge 8 is still engaged inside the groove 7. Further pressure on knob 6 produces a release of the edge 8 from the groove 7 and a sliding of the tube 5 over the outer wall of the tubular member 4. Simultaneously with said sliding movement, the cartridge 12 is thus urged towards the shoulder`21 of the clamp 3. The position illustrated in Fig. 2 is then reached, in which the ball projects beyond the tip of the pen and the clamp is open. As it moves towards the tip of the pen, the cartridge 12 compresses the spring 24. If theknob 6 is then released, the spring 9 urges the tube 5 rearwardly so that said tube 5 carries along with it the tubular member 4. The distance between the surface of the extension 23 of the pusher knob 6 and the upper surface of tube 5 is `shown las B, and the distance through which the inturned edge 8 of tube 5 is displaced upon the application of pressure on pusher knob 6 is shown as A. The distance between the top of the pusher knob 6 and the top surface of the body 1 is shown as C.

Consequently, the clamp 3 closes over the cartridge 12 and its jaws engage the recess 14 in said cartridge. The spring 9 urges the tube 5 to move longitudinallyfuntil the edge 8 of said tube reengages the groove 7. The ball point pen has thus entered its operative position and the spring 24 is held in its compressed state.

When it is desired to produce a receding movement of the cartridge 12 inside the body of the pen, it is suicient to exert on the knob 6 a pressure which is just sufficient for the production of a slight movement providing for the opening of the clamp 3. When the latter has opened, the cartridge 12 is released and the spring 24 returns it inside the body of the pen until its rear end abuts against the extension 23 of the pusher knob 6.

Obviously many modifications may 'be brought to the manner of securing the clip member to the body of the pen.

What I claim is: Y

l. A ball point pen comprising an open-ended tubular pen-body having a first annular rearwardly facing shoulder on its inner surface adjacent its front end and a second annular rearwardly facing shoulder on its inner surface, said second shoulder being in spaced relationship to said first shoulder and the lower portion of said body, an ink cartridge slidably positioned Within said body, said cartridge including a front ball section and a peripherally recessed section immediately to the rear of said ball section, a clamping member longitudinally shiftably positioned inside the front end of said tubular body about the front end of said ink cartridge adapted to open outwardly away from the said recessed section of said cartridge upon being urged forwardly of the front end of the cartridge and to recede into engagement with said recessed section of the cartridge upon being urged rearwardly of said front end of the tubular body, said clamping member including a rearwardly facing first shoulder means for engaging the terminal edge of the front end of said tubular body and a forwardly facing second shoulder means to the rear of said first shoulder means of said clamping member for engaging the said first annular rearwardly facing shoulder on the inner surface of said tubular body, the distance between the two said shoulder means on said clamping member being greater than the distance between the said terminal edge of the front end of the tubular body and the first annular rearwardly facing shoulder on the inner surface of said tubular body adjacent its fl'Qlll 14@ wherebyn to allow a relative axial shifting of the clamping member between the positions dened by abutment of the said first shoulder means of said clamping member Iagainst the terminal edge of the frontend of the tubular body and of the said second shoulder means of said clamping member against the said first annular shoulder on the inner surface of the tubular body, means for controlling the movement of said clamping member, said means being operatively associated with said clamping member and positioned about said ink cartridge, spring means for urging the clamping member rearwardly of the front end of said tubular body, said spring means being positioned about the lower portion of said control means and in abutment with said second annular rearwardly facing shoulder in the inner surface :of said tubular body and with a portion of said control means, and a pusher knob member slidably positioned in the open end of the `said tubular body, said pusher knob member beingV in operative engagement with the ysaid Vcontrol means whereby the movement of the clamping member is controlled to urge saidv clamping member forwardly against said spring means thereby permitting it to expand and receive the front end of the cartridge and then to engage the recessed section of the cartridge by closing over it. Y Y. Y

2. The ball'point pen of claim lwhereinthe, means for controlling the movement of said clamping member includes a cartridge guiding member positioned about the lower portion of the ink cartridge, the front end of said lguiding member being rigid with the said clamping mem,- ber and having adjacent its rear end an annular peripheral groove substantially to the rear of the second annular rearwardly facing shoulder Von the inner `surface of said tubular body, and a tube positioned about the upper portion of the ink cartridge, said tube being operatively engaged with said pusher knob member and actuated by lsaid pusher knob member, said pusher knob member actuated tube having at least one longitudinal slot and an inturned terminal edge fitting inside theannular groove adjacent the rear end Iof said guiding member, whereby said fulbe is yieldingly lconnected -to said guiding member, said spring means being compressed between said inturned terminal edge `of said tube and the second annular rearwardly facing lshoulder on the inner surface of theV tubular body of the pen, vwhereby the pusher knob member urges the tube and the guiding member forwardly against the action of the spring means. I

3. 'Ihe ball point pen of claim l wherein the means for controlling the movement of said clamping member in# cludes a cartridge guiding member positionedabout-the lower portion of the ink cartridge, the front end of said guiding member being rigid with said clamping member and having adjacent its rear end an annular peripheral groove substantially to the rear -of the 'second annular rearwardly facing shoulder on the inner surface of said ytubular body, a tube positioned about the upperportion of the inkcartridge, said tube being Ioperatively engaged with said pusher knob member and actuated by said pusher knob member, said pusher knob member actuated tube having at least one longitudinal slot and an inturned terminal edge fitting inside the said annular peripheral groove, said annular peripheral groove havinga sloping =lat-eral surface therein nearest the front end of. the guiding member, whereby said tube is yieldingly connected to said guiding member, and said spring means bemgc'ompressed between saidinturned terminal edge of sald tube and the second annular rearwardly facing shoulder on the inner surfaceof the tubular body -of the pen, whereby the inturned terminal edge is released elastically'from -said groove against the action of said spring means upon shifting of the pusher knob member beyond'the point corresponding to engagement between the forwardly facing sec- -ond shoulder means of said clampingV member and the first annular rearwardly facing shoulder on the inner surface of the vtubular body and the clamping member 1s consequently opened, and a second spring memberpositloned about the upper portion of the ink cartridge and between the rear end of Athe ink cartridge and the rear end of the guiding member within 'said pusher knob member ac- Y tuated tube, whereby the releasing of the pusher knob member causes the reengagement between the clamping member and the peripherally recessed section of the ink cartridge and Ithe reengagement between the inturned ter` minal edge of -th-e `tube and the groove inthe guiding member and whereby further depressi-on of they pusher knob member causes the clamping member ,to open again and to release the ink cartridge thereby `allowing the second spring to returnsaid cartridge within `the tubular pen body.

ReferencesCited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Switzerland June 1, 1951 

